Kirkland Hotel facts for kids
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Kirkland Hotel
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U.S. Historic district
Contributing property |
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North elevation and east profile, 2008
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| Location | Kingston, NY |
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| Built | 1899 |
| Architectural style | Tudorbethan |
| Part of | Kingston Stockade District (ID75001231) |
| NRHP reference No. | 02001323 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | November 15, 2002 |
| Designated CP | June 19, 1975 |
The Kirkland Hotel is a special building in Kingston, New York. It stands at the corner of Main Street and Clinton Avenue. This hotel was built a long time ago, at the end of the 1800s. It has a unique look called Tudor style.
What makes the Kirkland Hotel special is that it's one of the few old wooden hotels left in a city. For many years, from the 1950s to the early 1970s, it was also a very popular restaurant. After it closed, it was empty for a long time. People even thought about tearing it down. But today, the building has been fixed up. It is now used for offices and apartments.
The Kirkland Hotel was added to the National Register of Historic Places on November 15, 2002. This means it is an important historical place in the United States. It also became part of the Kingston Stockade District, which is a historic area. After it was restored, the hotel won an award for saving old buildings.
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Exploring the Hotel Building
The Kirkland Hotel is located on a unique piece of land. It is on the eastern edge of uptown Kingston. Nearby, you can find a garage that looks similar to the hotel. There is also an office building for Ulster County close by. The area is a city neighborhood, but it is not too crowded. The Old Dutch Church is just a short walk away.
Hotel's Unique Shape and Roof
The main part of the hotel is a four-story building. It has a trapezoid shape. This means it has four sides, but they are not all the same length. The building is made of wood and sits on a strong base of stone and brick. A tall tower rises above the main entrance on the northwest side.
The roof of the hotel is very interesting. It has many steeply sloped parts that cross each other. These are called gables.
Outside Features of the Hotel
On the west side, along Main Street, there are two sections with three window bays each. An entrance is located between these sections. A porch with a steeply sloped roof wraps around the entire first floor of the building.
The main entrance is at the bottom of the tower on the northeast corner. The tower has a small, round dome on top called a cupola. It also has a decorative piece at the very top called a finial. The north side of the hotel, along Clinton Avenue, has two sets of gables. The east and south sides of the building are simpler and do not have much decoration.
Inside the Historic Hotel
Inside the Kirkland Hotel, much of the original design is still there. The walls are finished with the original lath and plaster. A staircase with metal posts, called newels, and decorative wooden railings, called balusters, connects all the floors.
History of the Kirkland Hotel
The land where the hotel stands was once a lumberyard from 1876 to 1885. In 1899, a woman named Margaret Conklin bought the land. She decided to build the hotel in the new Tudor style. This style was very different from most hotels built at that time. The hotel was built to serve people who came to Kingston for business with the county. The county courthouse and offices were nearby.
Changes in Ownership Over Time
Margaret Conklin sold the hotel in 1917 to George and Jane Holms. Five years later, in 1922, they sold it to Samuel and Alice Saulpaugh. The Saulpaughs are known for giving the hotel its name, "Kirkland." Just three years later, another couple, John and Mary Eagen, bought the hotel. The Eagens ran the hotel until 1948. Then, in 1950, Max and Ruth Brugmann bought it.
Hotel Operations and Closures
The Brugmanns started a restaurant and bar in the hotel basement called the Dutch Rathskeller. In 1968, they stopped running the hotel part of the business. Four years later, in 1972, they closed the restaurant too. Later that same year, the front porch and the tower's cupola were taken off the building.
In 1976, a new owner opened a steakhouse in the basement, but it closed later that year. In the mid-1980s, many different owners tried to fix up the hotel. The city even tried to make it a landmark, but it never officially happened.
Saving the Kirkland Hotel
In 1988, another owner painted the hotel cream and green. However, they could not finish any other work. By 1996, the hotel went back to the city. At one point, there were plans to tear it down to build a parking garage for the county.
But in 2002, a local non-profit group called the Rural Ulster Preservation Company (RUPCO) bought the property. They had support from the city's mayor. RUPCO worked to restore the hotel, putting the cupola and front porch back. They got help from a grant from NeighborWorks America. Hillary Clinton, who was a U.S. Senator for New York at the time, also helped RUPCO get more money for the project.
The restoration project cost a lot of money, but it was worth it. RUPCO was able to install a geothermal heating system. This system uses heat from the Earth to warm the building. It saves money and makes the building more environmentally friendly.
The basement restaurant area has been prepared for a new owner. The hotel was officially named a city landmark before it was listed on the National Register. Today, RUPCO rents out spaces in the hotel for businesses and homes. They also host events there. In 2007, the restored Kirkland Hotel received an award for excellence in preservation from the New York State Preservation League.
